Navigating Your Way To Business Success: An Entrepreneur's Journey - Hardcover

Kathryn B. Freeland

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 098235780X ISBN 13: 9780982357804

Publisher: Freebridge Publishing, 2010

Synopsis

Navigating Your Way to Business Success: An Entrepreneurs Journey, tells of the road taken by one entrepreneur who dared to succeed against all odds. It is the story of a woman who started a company after receiving the disappointing news that she would not be promoted to the management position she had worked toward for several years. Instead of receiving the promotion, she was asked to train her new boss, which became the motivation needed to look beyond the current circumstance and envision what could be.

Kathryn Freeland walks the reader through the steps she took to turn disappointment into empowerment through business ownership. From the initial decision to become her own boss, the careful planning taken to achieve the vision, to funding the venture and tapping into government programs, she gives the reader a glimpse of what being an entrepreneur entails. She goes further to explain how the success of a business depends heavily on finding and recruiting the right employees, determining your competitive advantage in the marketplace and then how to grow the company through marketing and business development. An Entrepreneurs Journey does not focus on the perceived glamor of business ownership, but emphasizes the importance of navigating around the roadblocks that every entrepreneur will face at various stages of business growth. By navigating the roadblocks and devising solutions for overcoming the challenges, an entrepreneur s vision can be achieved. However, it is important for an entrepreneur to strike the right balance in their lives in order to avoid the proverbial burnout. Freeland gives strong advice on how to achieve balance of business ownership while also maintaining a balance with those things that are important, i.e., spirituality, family, personal relationships, etc.

As the entrepreneur takes the journey to business success, it is at the point where the owner is forced to define success for themselves that they determine if and when the dream has been realized. With each chapter beginning with a scriptural reference, that for Freeland shows her journey to entrepreneurship would not have been possible without prayer and the guidance of a supreme being, she intuitively ends each chapter with a list of lessons learned. Navigating Your Way to Business Success provides valuable insight to every aspiring entrepreneur, those who are current members of the entrepreneur's club and looking to take their businesses to a new level, and to those who doubt whether it can be done. Freeland reassures the reader that yes it can be done, but also cautions that entrepreneurship is not for everyone. However, for those who dare to take the journey, this book gives very pointed advice on how to navigate the entrepreneurial waters, where to turn for help, what resources are available, and how to turn setbacks into comebacks.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

NAVIGATING YOUR WAY TO BUSINESS SUCCESS tells of the road taken by one entrepreneur who dared to succeed against all odds. It is the story of a woman who started a company after receiving the disappointing news that she would not be promoted to the management position she had worked toward for several years. Instead of receiving the promotion, she was asked to train her new boss, which became the motivation needed to look beyond the current circumstance and envision what could be.Kathryn Freeland walks the reader through the steps she took to turn disappointment into empowerment through business ownership. From the initial decision to become her own boss, the careful planning taken to achieve the vision, to funding the venture and tapping into government programs, she gives the reader a glimpse of what being an entrepreneur entails. She goes further to explain how the success of a business depends heavily on finding and recruiting the right employees, determining your competitive advantage in the marketplace and then how to grow the company through marketing and business development.

About the Author:

Kathryn B. Freeland is founder and former chief executive officer of RGII Technologies Inc., an information technology, systems integration, and engineering solutions company that served nine presidential cabinet agencies of the federal government. Freeland successfully built and sold RGII to Computer Horizons Corp. in 2003. After fulfilling a three-year transition period with Computer Horizons, she retired in 2006. As the CEO of RGII, Freeland was directly responsible for developing goals, operating plans, and policies for the corporation and implementing board-approved plans. She directed the company with a strategic business plan designed to optimize profits and return on invested capital. During her tenure as CEO, Freeland played a vital role in business development, customer satisfaction, financial stability, and employee relations. During that time, RGII more than tripled in size, with revenue growing 4,800% during an 11-year period. Prior to founding RGII, Mrs. Freeland spent more than seven years supporting various federal government agencies in the areas of financial, information, and program management support. Freeland is a visionary leader who has made her mark in the business community.

Freeland now serves as the founder and chief executive officer of Freeland and Associates LLC, a consulting services firm that partners with businesses in the areas of executive advisory services, interim executive support, strategic planning/mapping, market analysis/penetration, financial/accounting management, business integration/transition, and business development. Freeland remains active in several local, regional, and national organizations. Her current and previous board appointments include the following: Board of Directors, Black Women in Sisterhood for Action (BISA) Board of Visitors, University of Maryland, Baltimore County Board of Directors, Baltimore Washington Medical Center Among her notable achievements are the following: 2007 TWIN Awardee: YWCA of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County 2006 Top Technology Entrepreneur by Black Engineers of America 2006 and 2003 Maryland Top 100 Women 2003: Selected as one of six successful business owners to be honored during SBA s fiftieth-anniversary celebration Leadership Maryland Class of 2003 Established the Kathryn B. Freeland Endowment for minority and underprivileged students pursuing degrees in the field of finance at UAB Established the Richard Gregory Freeland II Scholarship Program in memory of her deceased son, supporting minority students in the areas of computer science, information management, engineering, business management/administration, telecommunications, or other technology-related fields Established the R. Gregory and Kathryn B. Freeland Scholarship at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, supporting students majoring in the areas of information technology or computer engineering within the Meyerhoff Scholars Program 2000 Black Woman of Courage: Emerging Business Award by the National Federation of Black Women Business Owners (NFBWO) Black Enterprise Magazine 1999 Emerging Company of the Year Named the Minority Small Business Person of the Year by the Small Business Administration in 1995 Freeland holds a master s degree in business administration with a concentration in financial management from the University of Maryland, and a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. A native of Alabama, Freeland resides in Pasadena, Maryland, with her husband of 24 years, R. Gregory Freeland, president of FI Holdings Inc., and their 16-year-old twin daughters, Brya Simone and Brynn Nicole. They are the proud parents of one deceased son, Richard Gregory, II for whom RGII Technologies Inc. was named.

About this edition

• Publisher: Freebridge Publishing
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 098235780X
• ISBN 13: 9780982357804
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 232
• Editor: Devon Elizabeth Ritter
• Illustrator: Yvonne Roehler